Loch Ness Monster used to debunk evolution in state-funded Christian school. Should religious schools be funded by taxpayers?
ServantOfAllah
2012/06/25 22:52:28
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Loch Ness Monster used to debunk evolution in state-funded Christian school. Should religious schools be funded by taxpayers?
It sounds like a hoax, but it's apparently true: The Loch Ness Monster is on the science class syllabus for kids at Eternity Christian Academy in Westlake, Louisiana.
As reported by the Herald Scotland, a Louisiana school that will receive tax-payer dollars, will teach kids that the mythological sea creature is real in order to debunk the theory of evolution.
According to the Herald, one textbook, Biology 1099, reads, "Are dinosaurs alive today? Scientists are becoming more convinced of their existence. Have you heard of the 'Loch Ness Monster' in Scotland? 'Nessie' for short has been recorded on sonar from a small submarine, described by eyewitnesses, and photographed by others. Nessie appears to be a plesiosaur."
Starting in the fall, thousands of schoolchildren will receive publicly funded vouchers to attend private schools, some of which are religious. Religious schools in Louisiana will receive public funding as part of a push from Louisiana's governor, Bobby Jindal, to move millions of tax dollars to cover tuition for private schools, including small bible-based church schools. Money will fund schools that have "bible-based math books" and biology texts that refute evolution.
At Eternity Christian Academy, pastor-turned-principal Marie Carrier says that evolution is not taught. Carrier said, "We try to stay away from all those things that might confuse our children."
She hopes to secure enrollment of 135 voucher students for the 2012-2013 school year. According to the website Salon, the school currently has just 38 students.
See full story at http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/loch-ness-monster-used-d...
See full story at http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/loch-ness-monster-used-d...
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Sorry , Taxation without representation issue has already been settled . Government schools don't teach religion , They cannot deny education to those who don't attend government schools.
Under your proposal , each parent of a school age child would then be entitled to a $10,000 to $12,000 dollar tax credit per child for each child not sent to a public school . The approximate cost of each student not attending .
The non-establishment of any national religion- and the government not paying for religious education has already been settled.-
Vouchers applied to a religious or private school hardly could be considered establishment of religion . To claim otherwise is to claim the right of censorship of non public institutions .
The funds are for the education of the child , as such, the parents should have greater discretion to those ends. It is the same money , still education , merely at the parents direction as to which school .
Considering the subject of the question- not every school that is not public school is superior. If a school is teaching that the Loch Ness "monster" is evidence against evolution (where there is very crappy evidence- scientifically speaking) that the thing even exists- and the quote "we stay away from all those things that might confuse children" - then the school in question is only for parents who believe the best way to keep their children faithful is to keep them ignorant.
The problem with the public schools is that they have to try to educate all the kids who get kicked out of private schools or who are apathetic - or their parents are apathetic toward education. Someone who sends their children to a private school is generally going to be supportive of the school and interested in their children's education. But there are very good resources at public schools for children who are smart enou...
Considering the subject of the question- not every school that is not public school is superior. If a school is teaching that the Loch Ness "monster" is evidence against evolution (where there is very crappy evidence- scientifically speaking) that the thing even exists- and the quote "we stay away from all those things that might confuse children" - then the school in question is only for parents who believe the best way to keep their children faithful is to keep them ignorant.
The problem with the public schools is that they have to try to educate all the kids who get kicked out of private schools or who are apathetic - or their parents are apathetic toward education. Someone who sends their children to a private school is generally going to be supportive of the school and interested in their children's education. But there are very good resources at public schools for children who are smart enough to take advantage of them. I have 5 children - all of whom attended public school and all are doing very well.
2 just graduated college- One with a degree in Criminal Justice and one with a Civil Engineering Degree. He graduated in the top 6% of his class- and his school is one of the top 10 rated engineering schools in the nation. 2 Are still in college- one studying Pharmaceutical Research and Development and one Industrial engineering. My youngest is still n HS. I always promoted science and respect for science- and the jobs are going to be in the scientific and technical fields. The public school did quite well in preparing my children for college. We have to stop blaming school for parental failure and students who who just don't give a damn.
And you are completely free to pay for your children's alternative school yourself.
The level of education in grammar , civics , history , english, geography is pitiful and shameful , even for college graduates .
Public schools are flooded with kid kicked out of private schools , private schools and home schools are the refugees from the public schools. Name an other venture where a 50% failure rate is acceptable and promotion ( other than government jobs ) is based merely on sitting in a chair .
The education of every student has already been budgeted .
What reasoning would hold that the funds will only be released only if the student attends inferior schools , with substandard requirements .
In particular when superior education is available at 1/3 to 1/2 the cost?
Would not superior students leaving the public sector allow smaller classes and greater teacher student interaction with the dumb ones? Wouldn't this allow them to raise their level of education?
Reducing the overall cost of schools , increase the teacher / student ratio, increased catering to the lagging student. Seems all to good. Vouchers for half the cost to public education should by all means be encouraged . This helps the states to balance their budget without reducing any services .
Again- the state provides an opportunity for education- public schools for those who cannot afford private education. If parents want religious education they can send their children to CCD. If they want private education they can send their children and pay for it- or charter school is also an option. As far as home school- I would like to see statistics- as to how many students who are home schooled go on t graduate college with a major in the scientific or technical fields. The resources are there for the public school students to take advantage of them- it is not the fault of the school if kids don't give a crap and the parents send kids to school with a hostile attitude toward authority and the school itself.
Because the state provides educational opportunity for all of those who cannot afford private school- That does not mean that the state should be required in any way to pay for private schools. You can make the argument- but the fact is vouchers are not going to happen. And I disagree with the assertion that the state should pay for voucher.
http://www.mlive.com/news/mus...
Facts are only 27% choose home schooling of religious reasons .
The top three reasons parents choose to home school their children are as follows:
Concern about the school environment (30%), desire to provide a religious and/or moral educations for their children (27%) and dissatisfaction with the academic instruction (17%) provided at local schools.
http://boiseviola8.blogspot.c...
some interesting facts:
Homeschoolers often enter college with more credit
Homeschool students do better on the SAT and ACT
Homeschool GPAs are consistently higher
Homeschooled students are more likely to attend college
Some colleges actively recruit homeschool students
Homeschooled students may have higher college acceptance rates
http://theinnovativeeducator....
The state taxes the public with the explanation that it is to educate all children. This does not grant them license to censure or reduce education to nonsensical low standards so that the inferior students don't feel bad. Government frequently subcontracts services to private contractors. School should not be treated any different . Nor should children be penalized by withholding educational funds unless the parents accept the government schools ...
http://www.mlive.com/news/mus...
Facts are only 27% choose home schooling of religious reasons .
The top three reasons parents choose to home school their children are as follows:
Concern about the school environment (30%), desire to provide a religious and/or moral educations for their children (27%) and dissatisfaction with the academic instruction (17%) provided at local schools.
http://boiseviola8.blogspot.c...
some interesting facts:
Homeschoolers often enter college with more credit
Homeschool students do better on the SAT and ACT
Homeschool GPAs are consistently higher
Homeschooled students are more likely to attend college
Some colleges actively recruit homeschool students
Homeschooled students may have higher college acceptance rates
http://theinnovativeeducator....
The state taxes the public with the explanation that it is to educate all children. This does not grant them license to censure or reduce education to nonsensical low standards so that the inferior students don't feel bad. Government frequently subcontracts services to private contractors. School should not be treated any different . Nor should children be penalized by withholding educational funds unless the parents accept the government schools and not seek superior education at lower cost.
When the private sector can provide a superior education at lower cost than the ineptitude of a government bureaucracy , then it is entirely sensible for the state to accept the lower cost option .
The article is about 2 high schools in Michigan- and you make a general statement about all American public and private schools based on that article. Yes the public schools educate everyone- which will lower test scores- this is consistent with the point I made earlier. That is not an honest comparison. A better comparison would be how the top students in public schools preform compared to the top students in private schools. To be sure- many private schools will outperform public schools- especially the higher priced or more elite schools.
Regarding your statements concerning homeschooling.
I need to see the quality of the research for the studies quoted. Statements like "Homeschooled students may have higher college acceptance rates" are nothing more than statements with nothing shown to back up such a conclusion. "May" is the key word- not very scientific sounding.
As I stated- I would like to see the % of those who are home-schooled who graduate college with a degree in a scientific or technical field.
The state does not censure- funds are not withheld. State taxes go to pay for public education. If you want religious education for your children, don't expect the state to pay for it (it has al...
The article is about 2 high schools in Michigan- and you make a general statement about all American public and private schools based on that article. Yes the public schools educate everyone- which will lower test scores- this is consistent with the point I made earlier. That is not an honest comparison. A better comparison would be how the top students in public schools preform compared to the top students in private schools. To be sure- many private schools will outperform public schools- especially the higher priced or more elite schools.
Regarding your statements concerning homeschooling.
I need to see the quality of the research for the studies quoted. Statements like "Homeschooled students may have higher college acceptance rates" are nothing more than statements with nothing shown to back up such a conclusion. "May" is the key word- not very scientific sounding.
As I stated- I would like to see the % of those who are home-schooled who graduate college with a degree in a scientific or technical field.
The state does not censure- funds are not withheld. State taxes go to pay for public education. If you want religious education for your children, don't expect the state to pay for it (it has already been settled- that is an establishment violation) Especially if the school does not adhere to educational standards- by doing things like giving credibility to Loch Ness Monster and teaching that evolution is just an unproven theory and conjecture like ID (it does not qualify as a scientific theory) is just as scientifically credible. That is a religious- not a scientific viewpoint- and it does not deserve scientific credibility. Schools that have that kind of curriculum are inferior to public schools- and do not deserve taxpayer money.
Evolution is mere conjecture , which is why the controversy exists.
You are misinformed. There is not a scientific controversy- the only controversy that exists is with religiously motivated individuals. There are no competing scientific Theories- evolution explains, and is consistent with all existing evidence. In fact - the evidence that does exist- is much more problematic for the ID conjecture than ID believes it creates for evolution. You need to do research to understand the scientific case in favor of evolution. You won't find it in a school that teaches the Loch Ness Monster because they feel that kind of information is confusing. That is why that school is inferior to public schools.
Facts such as some scientist hold evolution to be statistically impossible. http://www.icr.org/article/493/
Evolution violates the laws of Entropy .
Better minds than mind have debated these points and much more in endless debates without resolution and I won't attempt to make the debate here
Sadly in the PC world of government schools , Judges have ruled it illegal to discuss these points in front of school children. Government forced ignorance .
Evolution isn't the only area where the PC police force doctrine in favor of truth.
http://www.noble-minded.org/t...
The second law of thermodynamics only applies to clsed systems.
Evolution is not statistically impossible.
http://richarddawkins.net/art...
The Id / Creationist argument is made up totally of negative arguments- based on half-truths like the ones you listed. There is a major difference- there has never been a positive case made in favor of ID / Creationism. It does not explain all existing evidence- in face the existing evidence is extremely problematic for ID / Creationist conjecture.
The case has always been based on anti-evolution arguments- and one supposes that ID / Creationism is supposed to win- or at least be equal by default. But that is scientifically dishonest. There is no equality - evidence wise. All life on earth shares common ancestry- life evolved- that is a fact. The theoretical part is the mechanism- natural selection through genetic mutation. If a positive case can be made in favor of ID / Creationism then it would deserve consideration.
But the fact is- there really is no evidence to support the ID / Creationist conjecture. It has nothing to do with political correctness. In fact- that is what is desired by those who want ID / creationism...
http://www.noble-minded.org/t...
The second law of thermodynamics only applies to clsed systems.
Evolution is not statistically impossible.
http://richarddawkins.net/art...
The Id / Creationist argument is made up totally of negative arguments- based on half-truths like the ones you listed. There is a major difference- there has never been a positive case made in favor of ID / Creationism. It does not explain all existing evidence- in face the existing evidence is extremely problematic for ID / Creationist conjecture.
The case has always been based on anti-evolution arguments- and one supposes that ID / Creationism is supposed to win- or at least be equal by default. But that is scientifically dishonest. There is no equality - evidence wise. All life on earth shares common ancestry- life evolved- that is a fact. The theoretical part is the mechanism- natural selection through genetic mutation. If a positive case can be made in favor of ID / Creationism then it would deserve consideration.
But the fact is- there really is no evidence to support the ID / Creationist conjecture. It has nothing to do with political correctness. In fact- that is what is desired by those who want ID / creationism inserted in a public school classroom- inclusion of a popular idea - even if there is no equality- scientifically speaking. It is really just an attempt by religious groups to insert their philosophical dogma in a science classroom- really a First Amendment violation.
Those that believe in Creationism , believe so as fully as the heathens that believe Chemical compounds can spring to life and become sentient. Although there is no evidence to support this position , law forces this to be taught exclusively in many government schools. This is as mystical a religion as any other. Heathens claim this mystical belief to be superior and call it science.
Again- you are creating a false equivalency. There is no evidence to support creationism- none- nothing. The creationist argument cannot be made without referencing evolution. It is really only a collection of anti-evolution arguments- all of which have been discredited. With evolution- all existing evidence leads to the conclusion that all life on earth is related and ev...
Again- you are creating a false equivalency. There is no evidence to support creationism- none- nothing. The creationist argument cannot be made without referencing evolution. It is really only a collection of anti-evolution arguments- all of which have been discredited. With evolution- all existing evidence leads to the conclusion that all life on earth is related and evolved. Evolution is the only Theory that cane explain all existing evidence- the evidence is used to make the case- Creationism is never even referenced. It is a fact that all life shares common ancestry- that life has changed very greatly over a very long period- in a very general way from the very simple to the very complex- and that all life evolved. And the evolution or God proposition is false one also. Many people of faith can accept evolution as a process. I believe there is no idea that is more destructive to religion than the idea that the only way that God can exist is if the earth is 6000 years old and there is no evolution- because with an honest look at the evidence- evolution clearly occurred
Thank you and take care.
Things like science and reason.
Religion has NO business being in the education field at all.
Welcome to the dumbing down of the future.
It's o.k. if the bible and TV guide is all that you have ever read. Critical thinking? That's dangerous.....Can't have the children doing that, they might end up NOT joining our church.
Way to go, Bobby Jindal!!
Though it would be nice if secular schools didn't ram evolution theories down kids throats after berating the 'closed mindedness' of believers in Christ.